TYC defiance over pepper spray policy sends agency back to court

Last week TYC acting commissioner Dimitria Pope told the Legislature that any staff still using forbidden pepper spray techniques were either "corrupt" or lacked "reading comprehension." Now the two groups that sued TYC have called the agency on that claim in court, reported the Statesman:

Jim George, an Austin attorney who chairs the Texas Appleseed board, said: "We had an agreed order signed by a judge, and they have not complied with it. It's unusual for people to say to a district judge, 'I will do something' and then just not do it."

In the court filing, the two groups claim that Youth Commission staff have used pepper spray in violation of both the court order and agency policy. They also claim that Billy Humphrey, the agency's deputy director of juvenile corrections, has instructed administrators at Youth Commission facilities to use pepper spray on youth, in violation of the Sept. 28 court order.

No hearing date has been set.

In their original lawsuit, the groups claimed that Dimitria Pope, the agency's acting executive director, illegally widened the use of pepper spray as a first response to control youths. Under state law, such a change should have been made only after giving the public a chance to comment on the change, the lawsuit stated.

Not only did the notification to staff sent out by "Bronco" Billy Humphrey fail to clearly tell JCOs when pepper spray could and couldn't be used, commenters in this post revealed internal emails (forwarded to me privately) where Humphrey openly instructed trainers at the units to continue teaching the policy trumped by the lawsuit. "The guidance to staff will not change," Humphrey wrote. "The [September 28] memo is in no way to be interpreted as TYC going back to the old way of doing business!" Here's the relevant portion of the email (forwarded by someone who's not on the string):

Forwarded Message

Subject:

RE: OC Spray

Date:

Mon, 1 Oct 2007 19:25:24 -0500

From:

"Billy Humphrey"

To:

"Marty Martin" , "Ashley Berry"

CC:

"TYC - Trainers - Field" , "TYC - Trainers"

Marty

Chemical agents has always been authorized by policy, staff have just been instructed not to use it. There are situations where physical force is necessary as there is circumstances where in the interest of preventing injuries we will use chemical agents. The guidance to staff will not change. If we must use physical force, it is a last resort and we are to do it in such a manner so as to prevent injury to any party involved. The memo is in no way to be interpreted as TYC going back to the old way of doing business!

Thanks Ashley. I will follow-up. Billy can you provide some additional guidance on the use of OC? Are we changing the continuum to move OC as the step before physical restraint? If so, this has a big impact on how we train this portion of UOF. Please advise. Thanks.

I left you a voicemail on your cell concerning this. The memo appears to apply to all facilities not just halfway houses, since it doesn't appear to stipulate in the memo. I have gotten some phone calls from trainers as we have to train this soon. Basically, it appears to read that we are returning to limited use of pepper spray. I think we need some clarification on this memo sent out so that everyone isn't teaching something different because I am picking up on a lot of confusion.Let me know if there is anything I can do to help.

-Ashley

No wonder the advocacy groups are headed back to court! Days after TYC told the court it would retract policies expanding pepper spray use, their head of security instructed trainers they wouldn't "go back to the old way of doing business."

That's pretty brazen, just as it was brazen for Ms. Pope to blame employees for any confusion about the policy. Clearly the administrators she brought over from the adult prison system - particularly Humphrey and Martin - knew that wasn't true when she said it. And if she didn't know, it wasn't that she wasn't told; if nothing else, she coulda read it on Grits.

122 comments:

Anonymous
said...

Could it be that maybe Ms. Pope is corrupt or lacking reading comprehension, these staff do work directly under her out of Austin.

Could this (violating a court order in regards to pepper spray) be construed as jeopardizing the lives and safety of the youth under TYC's care and if so should the ones who did this still be employed?

We have staff in the field that have been fired and or suspended for a lot less than what this memo implies and the pending lawsuit. How can Ms. Pope continue to justify their continued employment with the agency unless of course she gave the authority to break the settled lawsuit?

If any staff in the past 8 months was fired or suspended by this organization I would definitely want some answers. This certainly does not pass the smell test.

What about Humphrey's supervisor, Stan D. he should be held accountable for failing to place a rein on Humphrey and ensure that he was following the court order, but the problem remains is that Stan D. is just as corrupt as the folks that came over from TDCJ. Way to be a stand up guy, Stan. Great job of maintaining your integrity.

Yeah, actually I don't see Stan's name anywhere in the string I have (which is longer than what I posted). Isn't Martin over him? It's hard to tell - let me check my handy dandy TYC organizational chart.

This looks to me more like the TDCJ transplants working around Stan, though I agree he had a responsibility to force himself into the loop. But he's not the source of the decision to ignore the settlement, though I'd bet even money he's the one management tries to scapegoat. From what I know, "Bronco" Billy Humphrey was the main guy aggressively advising against abiding by the lawsuit settlement.

Also, since the General Counsel formally approved the ambiguous Sept. 28 memo from Humphrey, one assumes these matters, as they should be, were discussed at the agency's highest levels. How could they not be? The Commissioner not knowing would almost be more scandalous than the Commissioner misleading the Legislature about it. OTOH, a consultant hired to evaluate the executive administration called TYC management "absent." That certainly would be an appropriate description if it turns out the Commissioner had no knowledge of Humphrey's disdainful response to the court order.

She knew or should have known and for her to call the staff in the field ignorant or corrupt because they did not understand the intent of Humphreys message shows knowledge on her part.

How can the elected officials boot Dwight Harris but hold onto this charade of an Executive Director? At some point you would think Perry might want to step in and start from scratch all over again before this becomes anymore embarrassing than what it has already become.

And I do not believe Stan was involved in this pepper spray issue but probably had knowledge of it like so many others did in the field. But, because the majority of us are incompetent or corrupt we had no idea what the Humpster was trying to do or convey.

It is impossible for a TYC employee to be either "corrupt" or lacking in "reading comprehension" when that employee has never been provided with any directive (verbal or written) regarding the results of the settlement of the lawsuit regarding the OC spray.

As another commenter has previously stated, the legal standard is that Pope either "knew" or "should have known" who knew what and when. To attempt to pass the buck in such a manner speaks directly to her leadership abilities on one level and her intellect on another. Even I'm not shortsighted enough to blame people for being "corrupt" or lacking in "reading comprehension" regarding directive(s) that do not exist. At least issue a directive speaking against the continued use of the OC spray before calling employees names or questioning their intellect. Pardon the pun but it could blow up in your face.

Marty Martin is not over Stan DeGerolami; they're in totally separate departments. Stan is technically Billy's supervisor, but it's in name only, as he is given no authority to trump Billy's disastrous decisions. I wholly agree with those posters who have said that Stan is the fall guy. He's the only claim to legitimacy the new juvenile corrections dep't has.

Grits, please stop referring to Dimitria Pope as the Acting Commissioner until she actually gets that title. Right now she's only Acting Executive Director.

There is no Commissioner of any kind -- acting or not -- in place. I'd like to know when the Governor plans on actually stepping up to the plate and making a leadership decision instead of hiding behind the conservatorship?

Please, what makes anyone think that unethical practices are a thing of the past within TYC? I know for a fact that the halfway house in San Antonio continues conduct business as usual despite losing their superintendent. The caseworkers still meet with youth beind closed doors and blinds shut. I was told that the higher up's have been told about this, yet the caseworkers continue to believe that they are above policy. They are putting the youth and themselves in a dangerous situation and could set up another scenario of abuse. But who cares, no one has stopped them. They are on their best behavior when outsiders are there. Just ask the kids and they will tell you that this occurs.

The bottom line is that Stan has a moral duty, not to mention a statuatory duty to do the right thing. Just sitting on his thumbs and kissing Pope's butt is not what I would call supporting the field. If he is not standing up for what is right, he's just as wrong, and yes, he is Humphrey's supervisor, so he should be doing more to correct Mr. Humphrey.

10:41-you're right. There are still alot of unethical practices going on within the agency as a whole. I also work for TYC and visited the halfway house in San Antonio last week. I also met the new superintendent and she seemed very nice. After speaking with a few youth, the only problems they reported were with "The Six". You're right this certainly "could set up another scenario of abuse". If what you say is true, then why haven't you reported this?

This was taken from Mr. Ed's report, I find it quite ironic that they continue to stress transparency. But the one that really got me was staff would feel "culture shock", yes I am feeling culture shock when it comes to breaking a law suit settlement. I also get culture shock when administrators out of Austin send memos informing staff to break the law/policy. I also like the last sentence referring to TYC staff as "some are slower" if this is not the pot calling the kettle black I don't know what is.

To make staff aware of the new philosophy, regularly scheduled meetings are held with various classification levels of staff to advise them of reform initiatives and implementation strategies. The principal outcome of this effort is the creation of a ‘transparent’ organization. Transparency is obtained through open and honest communication, inclusion of internal and external stakeholders in decision-making processes, shared professional values among staff and clarification of staff’s assumptions regarding the state of the agency or its leadership. As we aggressively proceed to implement these strategies, it was our assessment that staff experienced ‘culture shock’; some more receptive to change than others. To respond to this concern, I found it necessary for executive administrative staff who had demonstrated their ability to embrace the changes to assist with delivering the message to those individuals who were slower to accept the changes.

I personally like Stan. I worked with him on one occaision. I also know that he's been directed to cover up for this "administrative commission" or whatever it is.

I disagree with him for doing it, I thought he had enough time in to retire and maybe he should do that instead of waiting to be a fall guy. He is in no better a situation than Forrest Novy, who was promoted to cover up the ignorance of the TDCJ flunkies running the treatment department. Forrest is another fall guy, hanging around awaiting the axe.

Da Pope was a mistake. Mr. Ed was a bigger mistake. Dwight Harris was not a good decision. Steve Robinson was a political appointee who survived because of his relationship to Bob Bullock. The bottom line is that the more incompetent you are the more likely you will succeed in Texas governmental agencies.

I put in 13 years with TYC and I am glad I am gone, but I still can't help but hurt for my friends who are stuck there.

Scott, one thing that might prove interesting is how many new positions have been created since the Pope has been in office. Today they posted two new positions "Incident Report Specialist". If I recall the elected officials were not happy when Dwight was in charge with all the top heavy positions in Austin. I would be willing to bet that TYC has added at least 40% more bureaucracy since he left. I for one believe they are doing this to create layers to protect themselves but it is something that should be looked at and questioned?

3:23, read my lips MORAL OBLIGATION. Does Ethics mean anything? If Stan knows what is going on and he covers it up, or does not report wrong doing because he is in fear for his job, he is unethical and just as guilty as the ones doing it.

Ethics, integrity and honesty are obvious traits lacking in the current leadership from the top to the bottom. It is clear that the ties that bind them is the lack of these traits. I find it appalling that the lege is not acting to remove every single one of the TDCJ regime. It is becoming more evident every day how inept they are. Even an employee like me, who lacks reading comprehension skills can see the easy solution: Hire qualified experts in juvenile justice and fire d'Pope & Company.

5:51, you don't see what Stan's doing, I don't see what Stan's doing, not one person hears his response, and that's because he's losing the battle behind closed doors. He's won some battles for current TYC employees, but he's not winning the war. But don’t assume he's laid down because he hasn't gone off on these people. Isn't that what they want?

Stan's gone off on Billy a few months back, then Billy opened the door and cried for a witness. A lot of us heard it. Some of the Juvenile Corrections people were standing there. Billy was crying for "Lucy, Lucy!! I need a witness. This man is threatening me!!" is exactly what we heard. We were all like, “what the hell?” This roadbed needs a witness with all that juice he’s on??”

Stan is a good man. Unfortunately, he has to pick his battles and sometimes that means letting others bring the 'smaller' ones to light while he continues to build a fire break. Everyone in CO knows he has no control over Bronco Billy - he knows it . . .Bronco is protected by the TDCJ Force Field.

It's easy for all TYC employees to criticize Stan for the things that are brought to light here on Grits, but how many of us know the battles he fights that don't make it here?? I agree that on the surface it looks like he's rolled over, and maybe he has on some issues, but as a whole, he continues to put up a good fight. He has retired once and could walk away. . . why doesn't he? Maybe that's his morals and ethics; maybe he believes he's all we have left that knows what TYC is supposed to be about. I may disagree with Stan on a lot of things, but I believe he is doing what he thinks is right. He's the judge of that.

Of course he is doing what he thinks is right, unfortunately, what he thinks is right is in the best interest of Stan, not the good of the Agency and its employees. Stan has has sat in his office, smoked his pipe downstairs, and double dipped the State while good, honest, and loyal employees were cast out for no reason. It will catch up with him sooner than later. If that's his moral and ethics, he is a worse leader than Pope and the rest her cronies.

Stan is among TYC's finest. He stays for two reasons; the kids and the good TYC staff. If he was fired, a dozen of the best TYC staff would follow him. If he left out of frustration, almost that many would go with him. That is his protection. But he must still be wise and pick his battles carefully. We can't expect him to carry the burden alone and it would help him if other would take up some slack and speak out.

Keep singing his praises, as he does nothing. I can't believe you are actually typing that he is a good man. Are you doing it with a straight face? What an absolute joke. Pick his battles? When is he going to fight a battle. Keep sitting on those thumbs Stan, maybe you can get your kid through school before they toss you and your pipe out of here.

Actually, that's sounds more like a Giddings flunky. No one in Austin-TYC other than Bronco Billy and company has an issue with Stan. Must suck to be a flunky in Giddings, or an outright fired former executive who is pretty unemployed? Who knows and who cares.

can we get back to the issue of the post please...ya'll are ruining the posting i have been waiting to see for a long time about this email to trainers and the incorrectly, defiantly trained use of force continuum. please focus and leave MR. D. out of this. It is obvious everyones ability to function adequately in their positions has been impeded by the current administration.

lets get back to the discussion and focus on bronco billy and the pope...new hope of losing the pope...

and by the way, i have yet to see an email concerning the pepper spray law suit. and i am not the only one in the only department either...the pope and bronco billy could have easily sent the email to all employees rather than relying on the dissemination by various levels of the chain of command. hardly a thorough effort...

GRITS the new use of force policy is rumored to be published this month (without thorough review by the way) in the Texas Register. Are you watching so we all don't have to?

6:19-if there is truly something "inappropriate" going on, then you have an obligation to the youth to not give up. I say keep calling the hotline until someone takes it seriously. I can't believe no one at your facility is doing anything about this.

Grits fix your posting..."Last week TYC acting commissioner Dimitria Pope told the Legislature ..." She is not and never will be the Commissioner. Word on the street is that Governor Good Hair will be appointing his on guy very soon.

Hey where I have been the Hot Line is answered and it is being Investigated,,, I do not know why they have not had any results but just think about it they are getting as much dirt as they can on TYC and it stands to reason that any calls like that would make the news....

I don't think there is any help on the horizon from within Texas government. The politicians who created this mess have too much invested in the TDCJ regime to do anything but protect them. I'm one who initially said, "give them a chance..." Well, they have had their chance and they have proven themselves to be a bunch of thugs not much better than the thugs they once supervised as inmates in TDCJ.

There is an open meeting tomorrow at 2 p.m. for public comment on the new proposed TYC grievance policy. Go to the 10/19 issue of the TX Register in HTML, click on Open Meetings, and type in Texas Youth Commission. Details are below:

The next joint committee will be 10/29 do you think the Pope will be prepared for this one, rather than I will get back to you later, huh, huh, I dunno know, huh. Maybe someone should read Humphreys memo to the committee I know they would not have any problems understanding it nor could they ever be accused of "Corrupt" or "Incompetent"?????

ONE THING NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED AND IT DOESN'T NEED TO BE DOWNPLAYED ANY LONGER.JCO STAFF SHORTAGES IS MAKING LIFE DANGEROUS FOR STAFF AND YOUTH.DON'T BELIEVE THE LIES THEY TELL IN THE MEETINGS WITH THEIR SUPERIORS (LEGISLATORS)SHORTAGES OCCUR EVERYDAYIMPLOSION OR EXPLOSION IS NOT FAR AWAY...

Any reasonable person can see the memo's and directives Humphrey has authorized to the staff in the field. Why has he not been suspended?

If he continues to remain in his position does this not show favortism or better yet knowledge or culpability by his supervisors by not acting.

Please go back to Popes statement in regards to the pepper spray and the settled lawsuit did she not state if the ground staff did not understand the meaning or intent of the Humphreys memo the staff were either "Corrupt" or had a reading comprehension problem".

Do these actions by Humphrey rise to the level of shredding, false report to a police officer (class B)and we could go on and on. I am sure the committee will take all of this into account on the 29th and act based upon facts and not assumptions that these current leaders have done over the past 8 months.

I agree 8:30, his supervisor, Stan D. has enormous culpability in this issue. That's exactly why he needs to do the right thing now instead of continuing to hide under his desk and do nothing. He is as corrupt as the TDCJ folks if he allows this to continue. No, I am not a "Giddings or TDCJ flunky", but rather a long time TYC employee that believes in doing the right thing, unfortunately, by the sounds of some of you people supporting Stan D, there are not may of us left in the Agency.

On staff shortages, per the filing TYC made with the Sunset Commission, TYC is 60 FTE's below its maximum authorized FTE level as of 8/31/07. Surely that filing is not in error; you just can not see all the help around you for all the JCO's.

If you run out of fairy tales for your children, you can find the report on the Sunset Commission website.

We all seem to be wasting all of our time on this topic, they should sue Pope I bet that will get the order enforced.. Come on we are dealing with the same type of people that were removed kinda like a Pimp takeover LOL..same game but different players,,, lol we need to get rid of the Union and get a Union with some balls and do someting about this whole situation..Has anyone ever seen any action from them employees union??? Hell where does all of the money go that they collect ??? Get rid of all of it including the stupid Union and find Lawyer who is willing to go against thes people...

I cannot see how they can TYC is only 60 JCO's below the maximum, WTSS is 60 JCO short as we speak and WTSS did not receive any extra JCO (FTE's) as did many other TYC Institutions. The FTE's alloted is the same allotment that has been with WTSS for over 10 years so there is no "Fuzzy" math here unless you believe what our current leadership is trying to sale. Maybe just maybe they will call her hand on the come 10/29/07, but I doubt it.

Yeah, 6:27, it is a hostile pimp takeover, and all of us are getting biotch slapped by the DaPope and her cronies. Until we all decide to quit being good little hoes, and start slapping back, we will continue to be pimped upon.

(i.e it's time to fight back, when are we going to stand up to this tyranny?)

I was witness to Stan trying to rein in Bronco. Stan overruled him and Bronco went directly to daPope. When daPope supported Bronco, Stan went ahead and told the Supt involved to ignore Bronco and do the right thing. That was a gutsy move - he called their bluff and they blinked. Y'all need to lay off Stan. He is doing everything he can. It is a hard thing to have a subordinate who is closer to your boss than you are. I know, I have been there myself in a different setting.

Doing the right thing is calling your representatives like many of us have done, not to say it has done much good yet but I do believe the more calls we can muster we can turn the tide.

We all know the agency is currently ran by incompetent TDCJ rejects that received their degrees from some remote online program and not from a reputable college or institution of higher education.

But, it makes them feel good to place this (third world university) on their resume or part of their achievements. Personally I would not disclose that I received my graduate degree from Troy State International?

In the words of Dpope Hook A Brother Up!!! I agree its time we stand up and either get the attention or our dead assed local reps...or get someone a little stronger is there any ideas on who to contact or all we just sittin Hoes for thes low life Pimps??? Hey that new guy in HR His last name is Humphrey Is He related to Little Billy??? Oh know maybe His Brother??

Representative Madden do your part and nail these wanna be leaders of the Texas Youth Commission to the wall. You have more than enough circumstantial evidence, you have testimony from witnesses, now you have evidence based upon e-mails from Humphrey. Did Ms. Pope tell your committee last week the memo was clear as mud, she had knowledge, trust me Ms. pope has sent many of TYC staff home packing for a lot less than what you now have your feet. Do the right thing and ask, no, demand for new leadership for this troubled agency. Are you and your colleagues getting tired of this charade????

Yall seem to think Stan doing a good job. Guess it time to send him away and he can post here with the rest of you pitfully people. You people have no idea about how to run TYC. Keep chatting all you do is put a big ole X target on people like Stan.

Stan won't have an X on his back, he is too busy kissing Pope's butt. That's another reason why he should be held accountable not to mention for failing to ensure employees under his supervision are following the court order on OC.

Here is what Wallace Brown, acting supt. at WTSS sent to everyone at WTSS regarding O.C. spray. Perhaps, Ms. Pope had a point. All punctuation and spelling is his own."It has been brought to my attention that we need to ensure that OC is being deployed in situations when it is authorizes according to GAP 97.23. I was specifically informed not to allow staff too physically (wrestle with youth) when a less injurious route can be taken. I realize there are going to be more questions pertaining to this but Youth and staff continues to receive injuries due to what appears to be excessive manual restraints when the policy authorizes the use of OC to prevent injury to youth and staff. When reviewing 93.23 please pay close attention to the word imminent and refer to the dictionary if needed (no insult intended)."

8:13 p.m. This must be what he and his secretary drafted behind closed doors. They both have taken to keeping their doors and blinds closed. Perhaps they don't have a picture dictionary between the two. Ah, but wait, what happended to spell check? DUH!! Two more proteges of a superintendent past!!

Just to get us back on track again...the blame continues to fall solely on Bronco Billy. The guidance he refers to in the memo is that if you physically restrain a youth you better be able to explain why you didn't use pepper spray... threats for termination for using physical restraint as opposed to pepper spray...retaliatory transfers of people who question his "guidance" concerning the use of pepper spray or locking up dozens of kids on formal disciplinary programs without providing them due process hearings. This guy's ignorance for policy and disregard for policies that he has been forced to be aware of is absolutely ridiculous. Legislators need to hold the pope accountable for this mans actions because she knows what he has been doing and just sits by and watches. either that or is telling him to do it so she can blame him.

I love the end of this quote Grits...."That's pretty brazen, just as it was brazen for Ms. Pope to blame employees for any confusion about the policy. Clearly the administrators she brought over from the adult prison system - particularly Humphrey and Martin - knew that wasn't true when she said it. And if she didn't know, it wasn't that she wasn't told; if nothing else, she coulda read it on Grits."...that is exactly what the rest of us have to do to try to figure out what the hell is going on...

Has anyone heard about some news out of West Texas where mail was either not given to the youths or hidden?? Or is this another corrupt act from the Sista Pope?? smells like the fake bomb threat,, U know whats funny about all of this is that no one is even looking into that one ,, Who do they want now?? and who does the Sista want in a high paying position next ,, I agree with the others on this one we all need to join forces and get thes fools outta there.....Damn

2005? So what are they going to do now? Beat up Chip and Lydia more? Maybe this is another one they can put on Brookins? I got an idea, maybe Pope can call Chip and Lydia on the phone, and when they answer she can say, "You're fired!!" What kind of an incompetent fool would resurrect something from 2005?

8:13 Didn't you hear? It wasn't fake... it was just assembled by TDCJjr staff and we know they can't anything right. Their product has been set aside until d'Pope et al learn their jobs...to be used as a snowblower right after hell freezes over.

Chip, Lydia, Brookins, Hernandez and Ayo should be sent to shine shoes in China! Nah, that might be too good for 'em! Send them to New York and let them pick up dog poop! Nah, they're very familiar with poop! I know, put them on a rail and send them to jail! Yes!

7:42 - I agree wholeheartedly with you. All of these scumbags should be awaiting trail, not just Brookins and Hernandez. Chip and Lydia are enjoying their "retirement" and Ayo is a regional director. Hell, if he'd have screwed a kid himself, this current, corupt administration probably would have made him the deputy executive director, with the lege's and the governor's blessing. Qualifications, ethics and integrity be damned. Makes you wonder how much longer this cesspool that TYC has become can last.

stan;s a big pos. i've said it once i'll say it again. lunch, dinner, drink and a smoke is all that concerns him. as long as he gets a check to buy those, he's happy to hide under the desk. beemn there an seen it.

11:36 You don't know what the hell you are talking about. Stan was our only hope. Now they have transferred him out of the chain of command. Bronco rules! I'll bet you are one of Bronco's stooges - you sould like TB.

He sat in "the chain" for months and had every opportunity to do something, but did nothing. I hate it for him on a personal level, but professionally, he should have kept his integrity in tact and did something while he had a chance. Yeah, they would have took him out long ago, but he would have went out fighting and had much more respect from the remaining TYC folks in the long run.

It's amazing how people get so upset about the facts. Stan should have done more, or he wouldn't be in this situation. There won't be any remaining TYC staff before long if Pope has her way. So, we better start fighting back now, or we will all end up like Stan, reassigned, and eventually moved out of TYC permanently.

Folks, Stan or no Stan, we are all about to be in a mess. I just saw an email today that states there will be no more payment for Overtime earned by JCOs. The overtime checks were just about all that is keeping these people around. What happened to "we're going to see that these people are paid", etc. etc. It seems I remember those words coming out of that jackass Kimbrough's mouth when he graced our facility on his Harley. What a joke:( Just proves these people are nothing but a pack of liars. Where are all the politicians now. Wonder if that's why they canceled the joint hearing on Monday. So they wouldn't have to face any angry staff that might show up asking why they aren't going to be compensated for their sixteen hour days anymore. We have got to get these people out - out of our central office and out of our state legislature. I have never felt so frustrated, small and powerless in my life - what can we do? I have spent countless hours sending emails and letters to senators and representatives, phone calls to the governor's office, calls the attorney general's office inquiring about the status of the Brookins trial - all to no avail. And all of these people are so certain that they will be re-elected, and don't need to worry about those pathetic, disgruntled TYC staff - and what's sad is they may be right. Who really cares anyway?

2:56 You really are ignorant - did Stan catch you napping? or are you Tommy, trying to stab him in the back to get in good with Pope? I somehow got copied on an e-mail chain between Stan and Bronco, and Stan ripped him a new one for the way he was mistreating staff. Bronco made a pitiful appeal to daPope. I wasn't in on daPope's response, but Stan's transfer out of the chain of command seems to be the answer. (I am not the person you just called out, and I never have worked at Giddings, either).

What needs to happen is for all of the staff at every Institution should recall any instance where OC was administered on your campus where GAP.97.23 was utilized after the settled lawsuit and call the attorneys and inform them, they will and can keep your identity anonymous, or you could notify your State Rep.

By doing this you will put more heat on the Pope Administration than you could ever imagine. They are about to loose another round in courts and the more mis-steps we can point out will hopefully end their reign. Or you can sit back and not get involved and Shut-Up and quit whining.

This is 9:03, I hear the crickets. I will not be showing up for work at my facility on 11/11, and I encourage the others to do the same, call in sick and force Pope's hand. If not, then continue to be punked by Pope's reign of terror. Depending on how many folks don't show at their respective facilities, I will document another date for the march on Austin. 11/11, pass it around to the non-gritters that work at a TYC facility.

Stan has nothing to do with the TDCJ reign of terror and he is not the issue. He did not appoint them nor hire them. You people need to get real and start dealing with the issue. We have unqualifed juvenile corrections people at the helm of TYC!! They have no idea what direction to take the agency in because they are unqualifed in the juvenile corrections field. They lacked the quals for the positions when they were hired and so did the cronies they brought on board. That's why we're in the mess we're in, as we watch the agency plunge to depths we have not seen before. We have weathered many storms, but this storm is almost the perfect one, because it has the backing of our elected officials. That is why those of us that have any tenure in TYC should be sticking together. We are what holds the agency together in spite of the hand we have been dealt by our politicians. We still have integrity, ethics and a determination to see TYC rise above the smell that currently premates the agency. We are the ones that want to see our juveniles become productive members of society by giving them a chance at rehab and not at TDC!

We have watched the promotion of inept regional supts that will just put another layer of bureaucratic bull between the field and Austin. Talk about building silos! It will come back to bite d'pope!

Remember d'pope stated that they would rid the agency of any & all associated with the previous corrupt leadership and the systemic disease? Well they failed, they still have the secretaries out in the field that covered for those administrators! You can't work for someone and not know what they are doing and then try to hide behind the "I didn't know what he was doing, lame excuse." The whole sordid mess started at Pyote, did they keep the secretary? Did he/she turn Brookins and Harrison in? I don't recall reading that he/she did, in any of the Ranger reports. What is he/she covering up now and for who? Now they have even promoted one his proteges from Pyote to a regional supt! I'm just curious folks!! You know if you don't scrape the pan or wash it before using it again; whatever you put in that pan will have the taste of what was previously in that pan!!! Go figure!

The heat needs to be placed on the lege and the guv! Keep calling, keep emailing and yes keep hoping. Without hope we might as well throw the towel in and let our youth be abused, sprayed and sent to TDC, regardless. We'll all look the other way and become corrupt and diseased and I bet we will see merits, promotions and appointments to committees of all kinds. Oh, but wait, I can't do that, it goes against everything I was taught and believe in. We have to unite and fight! We have to what is right for TYC and to keep the ship from sinking!

So Stan got demoted for something Bronco Billy wrote and decided upon? What's going to happen to Bronco Billy? Did they do anything to him? Who all is left over there now? Now there's no one left over there that has any true experience in juvenile corrections, and now some Wade attorney guy is running it? wow, looks like a disaster.

10:27 a.m. Where have you been? Commentors have been telling you for months what a disaster this is!! You have Harrison, Brookins, and their mentors to thank for this mess & anyone they were associated with! Including those he still contacts daily and who think he is an juvenile corrections expert. That man never thought about anyone but himself! Commentors that knew have stated as much! Stan was the last remaining person that had juvenile corrections knowledge! Write your rep and senator!

The real problem is not that the new administration (and for that matter the legislature) has no juvenile justice experience. It is their refusal to listen to those that do and to learn. They have dismissed many good staff because they believed they were not on board with them and their complete disregard of the Blue Ribbon Panel report is evidence of this. Their defiance of the court order on pepper spray is further evidence of the lawlessness that has taken over this agency. To think that Pope did not know about it or perhaps even direct it, is naive. And, the cancelling of the oversight committee hearing Monday, makes one wonder if the legislature and governor aren't somehow involved.

At the beginning of their administration, they stated that they wanted to make this agency a model juvenile justice agency and a transparent. Yet there is no evidence to suggest that they have the willingness or ability to do so. In fact, quite the opposite is true.

Despite any problems that Stan might have, his reassignment without any discipline for Billy Bronco and the naming of Wade Phillips (from Dell without even criminal justice experience to say nothing about running institutions) tells us that the agency has no interest in learning or doing the right thing. They will continue to make major mistakes.

I honestly have mixed feelings about this. The more major mistakes they make, the more likely it is that they are removed. On the other hand, the more mistakes they continue to make means that more staff and kids hurt in the process.

10:36, Sorry I haven't been around in a while, just now catching up. I retired out of finance a while back and saw an old friend at the UT game and he mentioned it and this site. So who is left over there? thx

The TDCJ regime think they are above the law. With the backing of the lege & guv, whose to day they are not? Don't expect any of them to be disciplined or reprimanded by d'pope or our elected officials. Elmer will see to that! Nothing will change until someone in the lege or the guv can look at this objectively. Don't hold your breath.

I just read in a previous post linked in this blog where Bronco Billy's sister came to his defense. She touts his intelligence, and that he is a kind individual.

My ass.

Your brother may have been a gem in the adult system, but he has no clue in juvenile justice. When you start trying to intimidate women by throwing your brief case across a room, uprooting family's and moving them for no reason at all, when you knowingly disregard a court order, you hardly paint the picture of a bright, caring person.

This is a very relevant question, why is Bronco not suspended? I really wish someone could answer this question. Look at the evidence, speak with the administrators in the field (you have already heard from many) and then ask your self why is this man still employed. Could it be if he goes down many others from TDCJ could go as well? As our elected officials you have a duty to protect not only the youth at TYC but the staff employed there as well. Please remove the blinders and open your eyes, I was told black-jacks are next, will this get you to act?

To the TYC Executive Administration, thank you for removing Stan DeGerolami from his position, he served his purpose for ya'll, and you held true to character and put him in some meaningless position. If he would have done the right thing a long time ago, and told ya'll to kiss his ass after he met with the Gov. and media to expose ya'll for the crooked individuals you are, I would have much more respect for the man. But as it stands, he is no better than all of you incompetent jerks that came over from TDCJ. Way to go Stan, I told you this was coming, but you didn't listen.

So 9:08, what makes you so sure Stan didn't ask to step down knowing what he was up against? This news broke late last Friday and Forrest did the same thing? TYC was held in contempt, so why not step down and let that Bronco Billy stand alone with no buffer? Looks like Stan made a good decision to me because Billy stands alone by his documented evidence.

If that's the case, and if Billy walks away from this with nothing happening to him, Stan made a damn good move because it'll show the differen't treatment TYC gets vs. TDCJ fluck-ups. This ought to get pretty funny because Stan wasn't on any of those e-mails the roided up spong bob sent out.

I still believe the Pope had full knowledge of the Humpster and his e-mails. Remember her comments about the field staff "either corrupt or incompetent". Why else would you make that comment unless you had knowledge or your incompetent, or both?

Chester Clay lead a "team" of individuals who had amazing solidarity among themselves. He and they were openly contemptuous of Dwight Harris, Linda Reyes and Neil Nichols. Chester's team stuck together with lies, intimidateion and cover-ups. When Linda and Neil were finally able to convince Dwight about what was really going on, Chester was forced into retirement and Lydia Barnard was demoted several steps. The reform began at that point. It was also at that point that Whitmire and Company became interested in what was going on in TYC and forced the removal of the very people who were reforming the agency, bringing in a group of folks who operate much like Chester's old team did. Makes you wonder...

I don't think Whitmire wanted reform. True reform would have cost money, and with a budget surplus available, the TYC leadership was prepared to make their case. Whitmire had more politically acceptable recipients for the largesse. Use that fool Hinojosa as his stalking horse, throw out the reformers at TYC, cut the budget, and bring in another team like Chester's.

10/28, 7:15 am - Ah yes, one must wonder what would have happened if the secretaries at WTSS and elsewhere had any ethics or integrity themselves. But I guess when you are allowed to come and go as you please, work (and I use the term loosely) overtime when ever you feel like it and wield your supervisors' authority, you can overlook a few illegal activities. So what if Brookins demanded and got a key to the grievance box and the so-called grievance clerk didn't think it was necessary to report it until after the investigation began. He wouldn't dare interfere with the griievance process, now would he? Besides, it might mess up the "good thing" they have going on to this day. The Ranger's report says it all.

Does anyone know why Billy Humphries was not named personally in the court case regarding pepper spray? It appears that everyone else was named but not him. Makes one wonder what kind of pull he has and where. Why would the agency remove Stan when they would not allow him to supervise Billy? Yet, Billy is still there despite everything that he has done.

How is Billy Humphrey still around? How can anyone with anything remotely resembling a conscience sanction blatant disregard for a court order? Evidently the corrupt and the reading impaired seem to be over represented in TYC's Central Office, the Lege and the Governor's office. Dementia and her crew are no better than the criminals they housed in TDCJ and in many ways are much worse. They try and give the impression of care and concern, but only care about themselves and their high dollar jobs in TYC. Dementia has already proven that she is incapable of managing any program more complex than a T&C and has yet to demonstrate anything remotely akin to ethics, honesty, integrity, professionalism or compassion. Am I questioning her integrity and ability? You damn skippy! Somebody has to, since it's obvious that no one in Texas government has the cajones to do it. The assessment of TYC's executive administration is dead on..., it is definitely absent. It would be better if it were ousted!

We don't need them - field and front-line staff can run this agency on our own - really we've been doing it for years. Administrators are usually absent anyway (these days they spend all their time traveling hundreds of miles to attend endless, meaningless, unproductive but mandatory meetings called by Ms. Pope and co. in Austin), leaving us lowly underlings in charge (someone to blame if something goes awry). So who needs an administration? What exactly do they do?

Lets take all their salaries, split them up evenly among the facilities, pay the overtime, buy some new equipment and give raises to front-line field staff - problem solved. Each facility management team can rotate "being in charge" of the agency and answer directly to an new board (who should be elected, not appointed) made up of representatives from juvenile advocacy groups, educational professionals, behavioral professionals, judges, etc.

Sure, this idea is not perfect, but I hope ya'll can see where I'm going with this. Facility front-line staff have been running TYC for years, taking all the risks, suffering all the injuries and receiving little, if any, support from "administration".

Southern, daily and good for you

Grits for Breakfast looks at the Texas criminal justice system, with a little politics and whatever
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